Thoughts of Two Rangers
by Dingo
Summary: After Phantom comes home, Cassie finds out what's beneath the helmet. A very familiar face...Chapter Five Up! Yay! Finished!
1. Cassie's Feelings

My shock-value…a Cassie-Phantom fic! Don't hold your breath, it'll never happen again. Uh, it might take awhile for the third chapter…it's in the making! *smiles anxiously while ducking rotten tomatoes* You're too kind, really…on with the fic!

   Cassie looked out the window at the dreary weather outside. Her life had changed. She had gotten an amazing gift from a girl named Katherine Hillard, four new friends and a home. She reflected on the various people she had met today, or n the last few days: TJ, a strong and trustworthy baseball player, currently the Red Ranger; Justin, a genius twelve-year-old Blue Ranger; Ashley, a hyperactive cheerleader as the Yellow Ranger; Carlos, a soccer player, now the Green Ranger. Thinking of green, she turned her mind to an event earlier that day…

_   Cassie took a deep breath and marched up to Carlos's predecessor. "Adam, right?" He turned at the sound and looked into her eyes. _

_   "Yeah. Cassie?" She nodded._

_   "So…how long have you had the Power?" she inquired, for a lack of anything else to say._

_   "Close to three years now," he answered. She whistled in amazement._

_   "All green?" she asked. He shook his head in the negative._

_   "Black, black, green and green."_

_   "Well, I hope that I stay on this team for as long," she joked, running a hand through her hair. Unexplainably she was nervous around him. Suddenly he laughed. "What? What's so funny?" she demanded._

_   "Are you nervous?" he asked, half-joking. She took a second to respond. How did he know that?_

_   "Honestly? I'm not nervous, I'm terrified!" she exclaimed. She laughed. "No, the fact that five minutes ago I was standing minding my own business and suddenly this girl I've rescued walks up to me and asks, hey, you wanna be a Power Ranger is weird, but not scary. I'll bet no one else will have to go through what I am, don't you reckon?"_

_   "I remember what I felt like, although it wasn't becoming a Ranger first off. No, I found out who they were, and then the Black Ranger went overseas." Carlos, who motioned him over, interrupted him. "Nice to meet you!" he yelled._

_   "Pleasure's all mine, Mr. Park," Cassie called back._

   "Pleasure's all mine, Mr. Park," she mimicked herself. She sighed. That encounter-and that guy-was going to be on her mind for a very loonnngggg time.

   Amazing. The only word she could think of to describe him. Amazing. Cassie fell back onto the bed breathlessly, thinking of the dark-armoured stranger that had come to their rescue. In that one instant where they were staring at each other she was sure she felt something. Static electricity would come close to what she felt, only about sixty times as much.

   "What the hell were you thinking?" Cassie yelled at Phantom. "Giving up your ruby?" The Phantom said nothing, as he was supposed to. She would have been extremely surprised if a picture talked back to her. Cassie leaned back against the wall and exhaled. Why had he given up his ruby so General Havoc could take it? she asked herself. Was she truly worth that? Obviously she was, in his eyes at least. 

   She rushed to his side. "Are you okay, Phantom?" He looked at her. 

   "I am fine Cassie. However, Zordon is not." She blocked out all that happened next, only dimly realising that Phantom had given Andros something, and then the rest of the Rangers pulling her away.

Later That Day 

   Cassie cried into her pillow. What else was she supposed to do? Her boyfriend, and she used the term very loosely, had fallen unconscious, or worse, and she hadn't been there with him. Sure, she partly wanted to find out his identity, but most of her feelings came from her heart. 

   As soon as DECA alerted them to the emergency, Cassie was already morphed and ready to go down to Earth. As soon as she got down there, she noticed a figure in a familiar-looking suit. It was only after she had thrown Carlos his morpher and the Megazord fight that she realised that it had been in the Power Chamber under the original Black Ranger. Her guess proved correct as she landed and saw Adam demorphing. 

   "Hi," he said to them all. She ran up to him but was too late as Carlos made it in front of her. 

   "Thanks again, man." After a few more pleasantries Adam went off, leaving Cassie's feelings in turmoil. On one hand, there was the mysterious air of the Phantom Ranger, who she cared for, and on the other there was the plain enigma that was Adam, who drew her to him unexplainably. She frowned suddenly. When Justin had revisited Rangerhood, he couldn't stop telling them about what he was doing and asking about what they were doing. Adam was exactly the opposite, smoothly evading any questions relating to a job or work, and not asking questions of them. It was like he already knew what they were doing.

   When Zhane stumbled upon their camp and confirmed their belief that there was no more help in the galaxy, Cassie was worried. No, not worried, anxious. Mostly about the situation they were in, but also about their strange ally. Was he hurt? If they…by a miracle…won this war, would she see him again?

_The Next Day_

   When Andros walked out with Karone/Astronema, her heart stopped. Literally. When Karone revived, her heart stopped again, this time with happiness. As much as her mind seemed on the party afterwards, half of it was on the Phantom Ranger. How had his fight gone? she wondered. Had he won? Or did he…lose?


	2. Phantom's Musings

   The weather was gloomy and grey, and it was about to rain. Adam Park smiled bitterly. _Fits my mood._ He had just met the most incredible girl, and his circumstances…_admit it, it's not the circumstances, it's you…_had prevented them speaking for more than two minutes. His heart leapt into his throat as he remembered their first, and last, conversation, only a few hours ago.

   _"Adam, right?" He turned at the sound and founds himself looking into the newly made Ranger's eyes. _

_   "Yeah. Cassie?" She nodded._

_   "So…how long have you had the Power?" she inquired._

_   "Close to three years now," he answered. She whistled._

_   "All green?" she asked. He shook his head in the negative._

_   "Black, black, green and green."_

_   "Well, I hope that I stay on this team for as long," she joked, running a hand through her dark, silky hair. He realised with a start that she was nervous around him and he laughed. "What? What's so funny?" she demanded._

_   "Are you nervous?" he asked, half-joking. She took a second to respond._

_   "Honestly? I'm not nervous, I'm terrified!" she exclaimed. She laughed. "No, the fact that five minutes ago I was standing minding my own business and suddenly this girl I've rescued walks up to me and asks, hey, you wanna be a Power Ranger is weird, but not scary. I'll bet no one else will have to go through what I am, don't you reckon?"_

_   "I remember what I felt like, although it wasn't becoming a Ranger first off. No, I found out who they were, and then the Black Ranger went overseas." Carlos, who motioned him over, interrupted Adam's recollection. "Nice to meet you!" he yelled._

_   "Pleasure's all mine, Mr. Park," Cassie called back._

   _God, she was nervous! I was about to explode! Never mind there was a ceremony I had to take part in, I wanted out!_

Adam grimaced as he walked. Now what was he going to do? There was always Rocky's dojo; every former Ranger had been invited to teach there, even Kim and Kat, who were into alternate forms of self-defence. But honestly, before he had become a Ranger, all he had ever wanted to do was be a partner with Rocky. After he had joined though, Adam had been thinking of different things. Being a Ranger had given him something to fight for, and he wanted that feeling to stay. Yeah, sure, he had been picked on as a kid, but that had been when he was really insecure of himself, and thought that everyone went through the teasing. 

   Adam scratched his neck absently. He could have been sure he felt something. His jaw dropped as he felt a pendant around his neck. It was a medium-sized ruby on a long chain that just hid under his shirt. It was big enough to be noticed but small enough not to get in the way. A tingling feeling ran up his body and he realised…_teleporting!?_ He looked around at the place where he had ended his teleport. It was a similar room to where the switch of powers had taken place, although it was much smaller, looking as if it was built in mind for only two or three people to fit. A blue-ish haze drew his attention. He whirled around and saw-

   "Zordon!?" Adam exclaimed. His teacher and mentor's tube was one on wall, and the light from it illuminated the rest of the room.

   "YES, ADAM."

   "Why do you need me? I just finished being a Ranger," he reminded him, not being able to keep the sadness out of his voice.

   "NO, YOU HAVEN'T." Adam did a double take.

   "What? I have no powers."

   "YOU DO NOW. CALL UPON YOUR POWERS, MY RANGER. CLOSE YOUR EYES, AND LOOK DEEP INSIDE."

   Adam closed his eyes, with a feeling of deja vu. _Phaedos,_ he remembered. _This is what Dulcea had us do._ He mentally touched a sense of power within him, and shouted out:

   "Let's movit! Spirit Shadow Power!" He was overwhelmed by the impression of power he felt as he morphed. Adam lifted his hand in amazement and saw the dark armour that shone in the dim light. He tapped the armour experimentally; it was considerably bulkier than his old suits.

   "AS YOU KNOW, ADAM, YOU HAVE A CHOICE OF WHETHER TO TAKE THIS POWER, AND ALL THE RESPONSIBILITY THAT COMES WITH IT, OR YOU CAN GO BACK TO CIVILIAN LIFE, TO YOUR FRIENDS."

   Adam didn't even have to blink. "I'm a Ranger again," he told Zordon confidently.

   Cassie caught his eye. What was he kidding, he intentionally looked at her, she didn't catch his eye. He couldn't bear the thought of her in trouble or hurt. Adam glanced at TJ out of the corner of his eye. _He's doing a good job leading the team,_ he reflected. _Tommy made a good choice._ He looked at all of the second Turbo team. _We all made good choices._ Adam hesitated momentarily as Cassie asked him who he was. What he replied was true, to the point and something he could send hidden messages through.

   "A friend." 

   Luckily his uniform was built only to demorph when he wanted it, or else the Turbo team would have found out his identity. Even now, he had to be wary of demorphing suddenly, as he was weakened by not having his ruby for so long. He lay down on his bed and looked upwards. The smooth metal of the roof reflected the face he wouldn't let other people see. Two midnight black eyes shone out of naturally tan-coloured skin, although it was paling slightly with lack of sunlight. Dark soot-coloured hair flopped carelessly over his forehead, not quite as long as it was in Turbo, but only a few centimetres shorter. His clothes allowed him to mix in with the people of Angel Grove, but were totally in his signature colour of black. Adam shut his eyes, and daydreamed of a certain Pink Ranger.

   He was seriously hurt. By looking down he could see wires coming out of his badly injured chest. He winced with the pain. Unlike his old Ranger uniforms, which almost completely eliminated pain, this one only dulled it. Adam's hearing picked up footsteps, five if he was correct. Ecliptor vanished, and he quickly covered his damaged upper body. The five Rangers came over quickly. Cassie rushed over to him.

   "Are you okay, Phantom?" she asked, staring as well as she could into Adam's eyes while both of them were wearing a helmet.

   "I am fine, Cassie," he responded. "However, Zordon is not." He hated being near Cassie and not talking to her as a person, but Zordon had given him everything. He deserved to be free, and if Adam couldn't give him that, these Rangers would. His mind was in a whirl as he hurriedly gave the Red Ranger the disk with instructions to the Delta Megaship. After they left, most presumably to search for both Zordon and the Delta Megaship, he fell to the ground thankfully. A while later, he heard Andros over his communicator. He replied to all his questions, keeping the darkness at bay as long as he could. Finally, the shadows of unconsciousness overcame him and he passed out.

   He vaulted over Carlos's head and kicked the monster squarely in the chest, forcing him off the Black Ranger. He helped Carlos up with a "Are you okay?" and a promise of a fight to LizWizard. The fight was properly given, and LizWizard ran like the coward he was. After Carlos had explained to him what had happened, and only very good acting skills kept him from showing anger over what had happened to Cassie, he offered to train Carlos in the ways of a Ranger.

   After Carlos had left in a rage, though, he wasn't sure why he hadn't admitted to being the Phantom Ranger. Did he think that Astronema or someone was listening? His morphing back into his old Mastodon Ranger was foolish, but he couldn't let Carlos become lizard food, and he couldn't expose his alter ego. As soon as they had finished the Megazord fight, he couldn't stop staring at Cassie. The love of his life was less than two metres away and she didn't even know who he was. With a polite hello and goodbye to the Space team he left, back to his ship, back to being Phantom, back to staring a photo of the person of his devotion. He had no idea of where it came from, but in it she was staring at the camera and smiling half-heartedly. She was running a hand through her hair and looked like she was daydreaming over something…or someone.

   Adam couldn't believe his eyes. There were more evil minions on this small section of land than all he had ever seen put together. Some stupid, wicked being who though they knew his identity had put out the rumour that this was his home planet. What would they all say if they knew that the one main planet they fought so hard to conquer was actually his? He fought robotically, like his partner Blue Senturion. The end of something was near. He hadn't been Zordon's student for a while, but the great wizard had taught he and the other Rangers much which he would not, and could not, fail to remember, ever. Sensing magical currents was one of his powers, both as a Ranger and a civilian, although unpowered it was only a rising of hair on his neck. Powered, though, it was almost a physical sensation, like a sixth sense. Suddenly the swarms of evil cronies halted and he looked up. A massive golden wave was approaching. As it went through the various fighting beings, they disintegrated into dust. So did King Mondo, Queen Machina and Sprocket. Suddenly a message popped into his head. *My Ranger. My son. She is waiting for you, Adam,* Zordon's voice said, strangely softened, strangely free. In a flash Adam understood. Zordon had sacrificed himself for all the good in the galaxy.

   "Are you sure they know of our arrival, Phantom?" Blue Senturion asked. Adam nodded.

   "The planet I contacted was definitely Aquitar," he said firmly. He winced under his helmet. Ranger healing did a lot, but he was in dire need of medical attention.

   Blue Senturion shot him a look. "There is another reason you want to go to Aquitar, is there not?" he asked softly.

   Adam laughed dryly. "I've never been to Aquitar," he told Blue Senturion. "It was the closest, and they have an actual Ranger team." Even Blue Senturion didn't know his civilian identity.

   Billy watched as the small ship, barely big enough for two people, landed on one of the small land spaceports. The door opened, and he hurried to greet the passengers, and to offer assistance if needed. As it turned out, it was needed, as the Blue Senturion walked out under most of the weight of a black armoured Ranger who he guessed was the Phantom Ranger. He ran over and without a sound placed one of the Phantom's arms around his neck.

   "Thank you Billy," a voice spoke softly. He continued on, taking the Ranger to safety, wondering how the mysterious Ranger knew his name.

   "You must demorph for us to treat your wounds," Delphine said softly. They were in the medical bay, and the Phantom's armour was getting in the way of her inspection of his physical health. He seemed to sigh.

   "Close the door," was all he said. She complied, he took a breath, and he touched his ruby. As his armour disintegrated around him, he looked up to see if she recognised him. As she nodded briefly, he knew that she had forgotten about her Black Ranger's Earthling counterpart. She started patching up his various gashes and abrasions and started talking to keep his mind occupied away from the pain.

   "When did you first become a Ranger?" she asked. He winced at the slight sting of the antiseptic, but answered her question.

   "Over four years now. This is my fifth power," he told her. 

   "Wow. What planet did you start on?" she inquired.

   _Here it comes…_"Earth," he hesitantly answered. He cocked his head. "Is Billy around, Delphine?"

   She stared at him, amazed. How would he know about Billy? How did he know her name? Did he really come from Earth? Corcus, her Black Ranger, walking in interrupted her thoughts. Phantom waved. "Hi Corcus."

   He waved back absently. "Hi Adam." He walked past into the room beyond before stopping. "Adam?!"

   "Billy?" Delphine said softly. You have a visitor." 

   Billy looked up from the scans of the Phantom Ranger. "Send him in," he said carelessly. 

   He kept working until he heard, "Nice place you have here." He whirled around and saw his best friend looking curiously at some of the pictures on the walls.

   "Adam?" He got up and embraced his former teammate. "How did you get here?"

   "On a little spaceship." He picked up a small model of the WolfZord and turned it around inquisitively. He added as an afterthought, "Thanks again for the help."

   Billy's mind ran at a hundred kilometres an hour. "What? You're the…Phantom Ranger?" As Adam nodded he punched him in the arm. "Am I the last one to know about this?" he demanded.

   "No, in fact, you're the third, after Corcus and Delphine."

   "When did this happen?" 

   "After I gave up my powers," Adam replied, sticking a hand in his pocket. He withdrew a slightly crumpled photo before slowly pushing back into his pocket. Billy's curiosity was aroused.

   "Who's that?" he asked questioningly, pulling the photo from Adam and looking at it.

   Adam gave him a small, sad smile. "That's Cassie," he said wistfully. "Current Pink Astro Ranger, former Pink Turbo."

   "You like her, don't you?" Billy asked.

   Adam pulled the small piece of paper from him. "Yeah, she's a great girl. I blew it though." He studied the photograph for a second before jamming it in his pocket. "Don't say anything, or you'll find yourself flying home." Billy smiled and then looked at Adam's face. His teammate was serious. Deadly serious. _Cassie, a Pink Ranger. I wonder if Delphine will let me use the communications in the control room…_


	3. Phantom and Cassie...together

   "Cassie, there is an incoming message for you," DECA announced to the Pink Ranger.

   She lifted her head from her resting position on top of the console on the bridge. "Who is it from?"

   "Billy Cranston of Aquitar."

   She lifted an eyebrow curiously. "Who is Billy Cranston?" she inquired.

   "Running scans." After about a minute, DECA responded with, "He was the first Earth Blue Ranger and helper to the Zeo Rangers. He left Earth for Aquitar after he developed a side effect to one of his experiments. All records indicate that he has been helping the Aqutian Rangers defend their planet."

   "Play," Cassie ordered. The bridge screen snowed for a second, then cleared. A maybe nineteen-year-old face came on-screen.

   "Cassie Chan?" he inquired.

   "Yes. What can I do for you, Billy?" she asked.

   He smiled. "It isn't what you can do for me, it's what I can do for you. I presume that you know of the Phantom Ranger?"

   She was puzzled. "I do."

   He sent her a sly grin. "Well, I know him also, and right now he is on Aquitar. Right now, he has no idea that I'm contacting you. If he did, he would probably kick my butt back to Earth." 

   "Ah, sorry Billy, but I still don't know why you've contacted me," she said awkwardly.

   "Sorry, I've got a habit of rambling on. Anyway, all he's said about the current Earth team is that you are the Pink Ranger. And that you're a great girl. And that he blew it with you."

   "But…" Cassie continued, knowing that there was something still to say.

   "But…for all his skills on the fighting front, he's got guts that could fit in your left eye and wouldn't hurt your vision when it comes to girls." Cassie raised an eyebrow at the slightly strange analogy. "I'll get to the point. I want to set you up with him."

   Cassie couldn't have been more surprised. "Whoa. Slow. Down. Brake. And. Rewind. You want to set me up with the Phantom?"

   "Yeah. He's…I don't know exactly how to put this…but he's either heartbroken or melancholy every time I see him. Evil's been destroyed, so you've got to be the reason."

   "Ah, Billy, one problem. I have no idea who the hell…heck the Phantom is or what he looks like!"

   He looked puzzled. "Oh, yeah, he told me I was the third person to know. But anyway, he's coming back to Earth…"

   "Back to Earth? He's from Earth?" Cassie questioned. 

   "Yeah, lived in Stone Canyon and Angel Grove actually. He's going back home on Saturday, so that's when I want you to meet him."

   "Again, how will I know who he is?" Cassie asked.

   "You won't. It's a guy, obviously, he knows me…and I probably shouldn't tell you this, but call him Kermit and he'll respond to it." Billy gave her a wink. "Or of course you could just ask everyone who went to Angel Grove High if they're the Phantom Ranger." He shrugged at her. "It's your choice."

   Cassie brushed down her blouse anxiously, all the while looking around for anyone acting suspiciously. It was Saturday, and why she was in the park was anyone's guess. She walked around for a while, studying the various people and families walking and having fun, not worrying about anything. _Especially not if some mysterious Ranger will show up to determine the rest of their life_ she thought wryly. She sat on the bench nearest to the lake, and watched the rippling water.

   "Billy, where is Phantom?" she said softly.

   "In front of you."

   Adam couldn't believe his eyes. Sitting in front of him was the one girl he had wished for, for what seemed like eternity. He nervously smoothed down his black shirt before he remembered that he had invoked his invisibility projection. All of the visibility and demorphing and invisibility and morphing lately was tearing his nerves apart. He heard a sound coming from her and bent closer to hear it. 

   "Billy, where is Phantom?" she whispered. 

   He thought nothing, only reacted. "In front of you," he said softly, going down on bended knees.

   Cassie gasped, then hesitantly reached out her hand in front of her. An invisible hand grabbed it and held it gently.

   "Phantom?" she whispered.

   "Do you doubt your ears, Cassie?" a voice asked.

   She swallowed. "Can I see you?" she asked.

   He took a deep breath. "Not here. There would probably be a panic if I materialized out of thin air." He lifted her hand so it was pointing towards the nearby woods. "I'll meet you there in two minutes."

   Cassie hurried over to the shady woods as fast as she could. Finally she was going to see the Phantom Ranger, unmorphed. She got there quickly, and leant against a tree for support. Suddenly through the trees she saw a black figure spinning. She moved closer, curious. 

   "Hi, Cassie," the figure said, without stopping the fast motions. She was confused; she didn't recognise him but his voice was familiar. The black whirling person finished, the last movement being a launching kick which took him less than a metre away from herself. He turned fully to look at her and she saw midnight-black eyes, so dark she could see reflected colours in them. "About time I saw you."

   "Adam?" she questioned.

   He grinned in response. "What? Am I invisible?"

   She was confused momentarily at his choice of words, but dismissed it as she wrapped the former Ranger up in a huge hug. He hugged back just as hard. "It is so good to see you," he said happily as he released her. "How are Carlos and TJ? Are Andros and Ashley an official 'couple' yet?"

   She smiled at his almost childlike enthusiasm. "Yes, Carlos and TJ are alright, and sort-of, Andros and Ashley are in a 'almost certainly but maybe not,' phase. Although he did leave his home planet for her, so that must count for something," she told him as they started walking side-by-side.

   "So he actually left KO-35 to be with her?" he asked, something akin to…respect? slight astonishment?…in his eyes. 

   She nodded. "Zhane came along, too, as well as Karone."

   "How is Karone?" he questioned. "I mean, knowing what she did as Astronema must be pretty hard. Dealing with the fact she tried to kill her brother."

   "She seems to be holding up fairly we…how do you know what Karone used to be?" she asked, whirling around to see him face-to-face. "How do you know she's Andros's sister? And how do you know where their home is?"

   Adam swallowed. Suddenly he thought he'd rather be back on the unnamed planet still fighting the army upon army of relentless fighters he faced during the Countdown, instead of standing here in front of a woman who didn't even come up to his nose and who weighed a good twenty kilos less than him. "Um, I think I hear my friend…calling," he excused himself hurriedly.

   Adam was almost home free when her voice rang out, "Hold it!" He stopped and turned, resigned to his fate. She marched up to him. "How…do…you…know…all…this?" she asked, punctuating her sentence by a poke to the Korean boy's chest every word.

   "Um…magic?" he guessed, rubbing his nose.

   "Magic, huh?" she repeated scornfully.

   He sighed. "It is magic. Magic, power, and a couple of up-to-date passwords."

   Her beautiful skin wrinkled as she tried to make sense of what he had said. Mentally Adam flicked the invisibility switch.

Hey, people. It's me, Dingo. Anyway, since fanfiction.net won't let me do this separately, I had to upload this chapter again. 

Question: I have a series that needs a new Ranger. She (it has to be a she) (men get too many powers on Power Rangers anyway) needs a name. If you look    , you can see a little box. Click that box and write a name I could use. She's the Purple or Brown Ranger, she has long brown hair, she's in Turbo and she's involved with Adam. (By the way, all Turbo that I write has Rocky still there unless I say otherwise.)


	4. The Ticklefight (yes, it is as stupid as...

   "Adam?" Cassie asked, a little scared, a little confused, still a little annoyed. "Where are you?"

   "In front of you," he repeated.

   Cassie's obvious mind went nuts. _Adam…Phantom?_ Her logical mind jumped in. _Well, it does make sense._ Her questioning mind interrupted. _How? Phantom showed up…_She realized the crucial dates. _Just over three weeks after he passed the powers._

   "Adam?" she questioned. "You're…Phantom?"

   The black dressed young man reappeared in front of her, bending on one knee. "Yeah. You surprised?"

   She thought for a moment. "Honestly? I'm stunned!"

   He smiled, recognizing the reference to their first conversation. The smile shifted as he saw her expression. "You mad at me?"

   Cassie swatted at him. "Of course not! What would make you think that?"

   He looked at the ground sheepishly. "Not a lot of luck with the ladies," he admitted.

   "What about Tanya?" she asked, searching for a subject, _any_ subject to talk about. _I don't want to talk about…**that**._

   He sat on the ground, motioning for her to sit. She did, smoothing her blouse self-consciously. She caught herself, and placed her hands firmly in her lap. A smile crept over his face as he watched her. As she looked up she saw the grin. "What? Do I have mud on my shirt or something?" she asked. He shook his head, still smiling. "Then what's so funny?" she demanded.

   "You are!" he said, unable to control the larger grin he was fighting with.

   "I am?!" she asked indignantly.

   "You are!" he confirmed.

   A playful smile made its way onto her face. "If I'm so funny, why aren't you laughing?" She pretended to think for a moment. "Maybe I need to…" Her voice trailed off as she launched herself at him. She went start to the ticklish spots, under his arms, anywhere she could reach. Before she could really set in, he started with her, going anywhere he could. Before long both of them were rolling in the ground laughing. They finally sat up.

   "You're crying!" Adam exclaimed amidst a burst of laughter. She swatted him again. That led to another bout of rolling on the ground, laughing so hard tears came to their eyes. 

Short, short, yeah, yeah, but you wanted me to update and the next one's coming soon. (I hope.) Anyway, I had a plea in the last chapter about the name for my Ranger, but I've **had no names!** Gimme gimme gimme! 


	5. What Happened Next?

   Adam sat up properly, leaning against a tall ash tree. "Anyway, back to your earlier question about Tanya," he began. "She decided she wanted 'more from life' than what I could give her." A sarcastic smile passed over his face. "Luckily the wedding ring in my pocket wasn't seen by her."

   "That must have been awful," Cassie sympathized.

   He nodded. "It was pretty bad, but that was only two days after I got the Spirit powers, so it ended up being a good thing. She wouldn't have seen me for a couple of years."

   She cocked her head. "Spirit powers?"

   "You've never heard me morph, have you? Anyway, they're spirit shadow powers to be precise. They're limited now Zordon…" He dropped off. Cassie suddenly thought of something.

   "You don't blame Andros, do you?' she demanded. He smiled inwardly at the fire in her eyes; so much like the fire he had seen when Havok had captured them both.

   "I wish there had been a better way, but no, Andros wasn't to blame. Zordon knew he was going to die, that's why when he came close to dying a couple of times when I was a normal Ranger he had the look in his eyes, that 'I'm going to survive this, I have to live,' look." He sighed, and suddenly looked up at her, saying, "I really don't want to discuss anything really heavy, so I'll move on to…how's _your_ love-life?"

   "Oy! Since when was _my_ love-life not heavy?" Cassie asked, mock annoyed. She lunged for him, and he guessed what was coming.

   They started to tickle each other again, Cassie pinning Adam to the ground despite Adam having stronger muscles. He squirmed, somehow knocking her arm and making it buckle. She landed flat on top of him; her lips only…_don't go there_ she mentally warned herself. Her _face_ only centimeters…millimeters…away from his. She looked straight into his black eyes, as dark as the sun was bright, and saw almost nothing. His face was guarded, but she could see the smallest amount of unguarded emotion.

   _Lust? Excitement?…Love?_

   So close he could see her lips vibrate every time she breathed…_that's got to be her, I don't think I am breathing_…Adam watched the emotions flicker across her face. Surprise…_damn I want to kiss her_…wariness…_damn she's pretty_…edging onto curiosity…_how long have I wanted this exact situation?_…finally bordering on a word that began with L…something that was usually written on Valentine's Day cards. He lifted his head less than a centimeter, and she pressed down to meet him. His tongue slipped out to run across her bottom lip, and she shivered. Cassie consciously placed her hands on his arms, leaving him no way to escape, and moved down hungrily. Adam kissed her back willingly, unable to really do anything else. She moved her hands, one coming up to press his head in closer to her, her other on to grip his shoulder. Adam's hands came to rest on her back, one on top of her shoulder blade and one at the small of her back. Gently she pulled away and smiled at him. Her smile was infectious, as he grinned back.

   "I love you, Cassie Chan, former Pink Turbo, former Pink Astro."

   "I love you, Adam Park, former Green Turbo, former Spirit Shadow."

   There were no more words as Adam pulled her in for another mind-blowing kiss.


End file.
